


Great King Rat

by nepodstatnyclovek



Category: Queen (Band)
Genre: 1975, Barry Sheffield, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Norman Sheffield - Freeform, The Ridge Farm, Trident Studios, a night at the opera
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-09
Updated: 2019-04-09
Packaged: 2020-01-07 12:49:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,044
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18410993
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nepodstatnyclovek/pseuds/nepodstatnyclovek
Summary: The morning was almost perfect at the Ridge Farm Studios.Except for the fact, John's son was soon to be born and Roger forgot they were leaving at 6 PM. He probably hooked up with some girl.***Based on a Tumblr post.(Caller: "We have your wife."Brian: "I don't have a wife."Caller: "Who's this blonde who just spit on my face and called me a bitch then?"John: "Oh my god, they have Roger.")***I’m also not good with tags. Sorry.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The story is set in 1975.  
> It’s a fanfiction on the band, not the film. Thaťs why, for example, there’s no Paul Prenter and there are other characters instead.  
> Enjoy!

He woke up around 7 AM. The sun was painting light circles around the room and his face. Birds were singing in the distance, muted by the thick window glass.

He didn't like the Ridge Farm at first however now he had to admit he was into the calmness of the country. The bed seemed to be stuffy and old at first, but he actually slept well after years of his cheap mattress.

He slowly got up and dressed. It was beginning of July but they were told it's always cold in Surrey, especially in the morning, so he threw on a sweatshirt he borrowed from Freddie and walked down the old squeaky stairs straight to the kitchen.

He was pretty sure his two bandmates were still asleep so he decided to prepare breakfast for when they wake up. He found mugs really quickly along with plates. Tea was in a cupboard on top of a fridge from which he grabbed eggs, onion and butter.

"Morning, Brian," John walked in with a smile. He was wearing a black jacket and held a paper, almost caressing it.

"Morning, John," the guitarist replied, pouring boiling water into three mugs and put one of them in front of his friend. Then he noticed the object in bassist's hand. "Is that a song you wrote?"

John nodded: "I thought about writing something for Ronnie. I'm not going to be there for her and Robert in the first moments probably, so I'll try to make it up for her at least by this," he showed the text to Brian who read it curiously.

It was obvious the younger man was nervous from not being at his son's birth and being stuck in the middle of nowhere instead.

"I really like it, Deaky," the astrophysicist told him happily while cutting an onion, "I think it'll blow up. How are you going to call it?"

He threw the onion on the pan as well and waited for a while before he added eggs.

" _You're my best friend_ ," John said proudly.

They heard steps and humming (in which they recognized a part from "Fred's Thing") before Freddie joined them with the words "Good morning, darlings." He looked around the telephone in the corner of the kitchen and then sat beside John.

Brian separated their breakfast into three equal parts and handed two plates to his bandmates. Then he took a seat closest to the door to outside.

The singer took the last cup, bringing it to his lips and then he said: "I was just checking if Frank left us any note."

The morning was almost perfect at the Ridge Farm Studios.

Except for the fact, Deaky's son was soon to be born and Roger forgot they were leaving at 6 PM. He probably hooked up with some girl. John Reid, their new manager, promised he'd call them when Roger was on his way.

Frank Andrews, the owner the Ridge Farm Studios, said he'd leave them a note if John called and they were still asleep.

Just in the moment they finished eating and Freddie talked very kindly about John's new song, the phone started ringing.

"I'll get it," Freddie, as the closest of them, announced and picked up. "So? Did you find him, John?"

"We have your whore."

"S-Sorry?" The sentence caught the Persian completely of guard. The caller's voice was unfamiliar, really low and husky. The caller's voice was not  _John's_. "I'm sorry, but if this is a prank call, it certainly isn't funny."

John and Brian heard the sudden nervosity in the singer's voice. Without a word, they stepped closer so they could hear the caller as well.

"Dear Mr Mercury," the guy's voice sounded almost... amused, "that blondie who just spit in my face and called me a bitch is pretty sure this isn't a prank call."

The curly one started having a really bad feeling about this. Especially when the caller knew Freddie's name.

Freddie seemed to take this seriously - they all had - and suddenly pure panic was written all over his face. "I-Is this about M-Mary?"

Brian almost felt his heart freeze. They arrived only yesterday to Surrey and it would take a while to get back to London. They all knew how much Freddie loved his fiancee, the kind sweet Mary. All of them loved her. He felt his heart freeze  _almost_ , because, as he quickly realised, Mary was never confident to actually spit into someone's face.

They heard someone cursing in the distance and then the caller's voice, probably responding to them.

"Shut up, will ya?" he growled before paying his attention back to the boys, "Well, Mr Mercury, I'm pretty sure your whore is offended now that you just called him Mary. Your mother didn't tell you anything about good behaviour, did she?"

They didn't have to think for too long to figure out who was the man talking about.

"Roger," John said the thing that was clear now, suddenly out of breath.

"I see your friends came to chat as well!" the man stated in a tone that sent shivers down spines and then talked, but not into the telephone. However, he held the handset close enough so they could hear every word.

"Do you hear that, blondie? Your friends miss their whore!"

Roger probably answered, as the caller laughed and then turned his attention back to them: "He was pretty clear about all of you when he woke. May I quote:  _If Fred thinks this is funny, I'll kick him into balls and he'll sing higher than ever before._  It was almost heartbreaking telling him the truth."

Brian breathed in and out before asking: "And the truth is...?"

"Originally, we wouldn't bother calling you. Business is business. But I was told you're about to be a really successful band, you already are! And it would be so sad to lose your drummer, am I right?

So, here's the deal: I'll call you to inform how much money we were offered for him and if you pay the price, or even better, more, we'll give him back to you."

Suddenly, Brian almost fell on the floor as his legs stopped working. His friends caught him before it was too late and could feel his body heat being really cold. He looked at both of them, shock and a little bit of disgust written in his face. His voice was trembling as he pronounced his conclusion.

"H-Human t-traff-ficing."

They all froze in the spot. This wasn't happening. This  _couldn't_ be happening. The situation felt unreal, felt hopeless.

There was one good thing about it, at least: John wasn't stressing about his pregnant wife anymore.

_The morning was almost perfect at the Ridge Farm Studios._


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I expected to update sooner but the whole chapter got deleted and I had to rewrite it again. Sorry.

Roger had his shit together.

He woke up early enough to have a bigger breakfast without any urge to hurry. He tidied up the place because they planned to leave for at least two weeks. Then he packed his personal stuff and clothes, a lot of long-sleeved items, as they were told it's cold in Surrey.

When he finished all his work, every task on his imaginary "To do list" accomplished, he still had nearly three hours. So he decided to go out for a late lunch. Sammy recommended him a really nice Japanese restaurant not that far away from his flat, so he grabbed his wallet and keys heading there.

The weather was really nice, he started humming subconsciously  _Here Comes the Sun_  by the Beatles, as his pink converses clapped on the pavement. The drummer was wearing a light jacket and a lion crop top, enjoying the warm wind blowing. This was probably the last warmness he'd get in the next three weeks so he decided to enjoy it as much as he could.

The restaurant was small but welcoming at first sight. It was almost empty as it was after lunchtime, occupied only by an older couple and a woman with two sons. Young Japanese girl with really short hair seated him in the corner of the place and handed him Menu. She was wearing bright red lipstick and a polite smile.

Just a few minutes after him two guys came in. They were both slightly taller than Brian would be, one of them with curly hair and the other one with a buzzcut.

Roger could feel their stares burning into his scalp when he was ordering, however, he tried to brush it off. Perhaps they just recognised him from the Tops of te Pops. Either way, it made him nervous.

The waitress was quickly back, placing noodles with shrimps and a beer in front of him.

He finally managed to push the men, who were sitting behind him, aside because the food was delicious. He took a mental note he should go here more often. And also thank Sammy for recommending.

The girl blushed as their fingers touched at the moment he was paying.  But he didn't notice because he started feeling  _weird_. His eyelids felt suddenly too heavy to lift and he felt tired like he was going to faint.

 _Left and right,_  he reminded himself, concentrating on his feet, trying not to fall asleep while walking. There was a narrow alley beside him. And on the other side, he could see a taxi sign. The blond was so exhausted he wasn't sure he'd make it home.

 _Left and right_ , he reminded himself before leaning against a wall. He should call himself that taxi. Or he should call Brian so he'd pick him up-

"King really wasn't lying. Closer you are even prettier,  _blondie_."

His thoughts were interrupted by a low husky voice. It took him a moment to blink away the tiredness so he could see the men from the restaurant. They were both grinning dangerously. Roger could feel his heart beating faster.

He tried to fight his own body. He was in a lot of trouble if he fell asleep now they could mug him. Do literally  _anything._ His brain tried to order his fist to smash their faces and run away but nothing happened.

He was so, so tired.

Maybe he felt the fingers caressing his cheek but he was probably already asleep at that moment.

***

Roger woke up because of being cold. He was trembling - it was pretty chill in the room and he was wearing just his crop top.

Why did he fall asleep in his clothes, not pyjamas? Why... Why did he fall asleep in a chair?

He tried to cover up, but his hands were tied behind his back. He thought he was in his apartment before, perhaps got shitfaced or something, but how could he manage to get into this situation at home?

"What the fuck...?"

His eyes just started adjusting to the light and recognising things in the room - such as a bed, a bucket in the corner, two chairs right beside a door and a hole just above the ceiling probably representing a window - when a sharp bright light blinded him.

"The blondie finally woke up!" a man standing in the door frame announced like he had some kind of an audience.

The man seemed familiar. The drummer heard that voice before an when the guy stepped out of the light, he even recognised short brown hair and blue eyes. Trying not to panic he shouted: "If Fred thinks this is funny, I'll kick him into balls and he'll sing higher than ever before!"

He wished this was a prank. That Freddie would jump out of some hidden closet suddenly and laugh together with John at him. Because his gut was telling him this was real.

"Ohhhh, you're so adorable when you get angry!" the man was mocking him, "You'll be worth so much money,  _blondie_."

When hearing that nickname, everything snapped into the place. Of course that curly guy was familiar, he  _kidnapped_  the drummer yesterday. And judging his state that day, probably even drugged him.

Roger reacted without thinking: "You bitch!" he growled and spit on that guy's big nose immediately.

The man seemed not to expect that, but his cold confident mask came back in a matter of seconds. "Now careful there, pretty one. We won't play nice and I think you don't want to make it for your friends or yourself even worse than it already is."

"I guess your pimps are worried about you. We should probably let them know where are you," another man - Roger recognised him as the other kidnapper because of the buzzcut - came in with a telephone which he put on one of the chairs; the wire was probably too short, "Am I right, Great?"

"Yeah, you're right, Rat," the brown-haired responded and without any other word he sat next to the telephone and started dialling numbers.

Their nicknames reminded the musician something, but he wasn't sure what exactly.

Rat was observing the drummer curiously. The blond noticed he showed his front teeth unconsciously when he spoke: "Great was always way prettier than me. I always envied his fluffy curls and big blue eyes.

But you are another level of handsome. If you weren't for sale," he leaned closer to Roger, "I'd make you my personal slut."

Roger was disgusted. Disgusted by those words, disgusted by this man, disgusted by this situation. He felt his throat tightening and an urge to cry however he couldn't bring himself to...

"So? Did you find him, John?"

_Freddie._

This was Freddie's voice coming out of the handset that Great was holding. 

God, it suddenly felt like years since they talked.

The mentioned one grinned at Roger before saying: "We have your whore."

"S-Sorry? I'm sorry, but if this is a prank call, it certainly isn't funny."

_I wish it was a prank call, Fred, I wish it was._

"Dear Mr Mercury," Great smiled even widely, "that blondie who just spit in my face and called me a bitch is pretty sure this isn't a prank call."

It was terrifying how confident the kidnapper was when announcing what happened just minutes ago.  _Shouldn't he be upset or something, not... amused?_

"I-Is this about M-Mary?"

"Aren't you hurt, blondie?" Rat whispered against his ear, the touch making the drummer flinch, "Aren't you hurt that one of your pimps clearly cares more about some bitch called Mary than his little whore?"

Roger was warned he should keep his mouth shut, otherwise, it wouldn't end well for him. He knew it, but Rat made his anger burst out.

"Stop calling me that, you nasty little fuck! Stop calling her that, stop calling them that-"

He was interrupted by a touch against his throat. Great squeezed quickly, Roger knew the brown-haired did it just to shut him up, but he was pretty sure it would leave a bruise.

"Shut up, will ya?" the kidnapper growled before turning his attention back to Freddie.

"Well, Mr Mercury, I'm pretty sure your whore is offended now that you just called him Mary. Your mother didn't tell you anything about good behaviour, did she?"

Few seconds of silence. Then they finally got a response.

"Roger."

That was Deaky's voice. It broke Roger's heart to hear him so terrified. 

"I see your friends came to chat as well!" Great turned straight to Roger, "Do you hear that, blondie? Your friends miss their whore!"

Roger tried to avoid the blue-eyed man's stare. He answered with simple and careful "Hm".

Great just laughed at that, talking back to the handset: "He was pretty clear about all of you when he woke. May I quote:  _If Fred thinks this is funny, I'll kick him into balls and he'll sing higher than ever before._ It was almost heartbreaking telling him the truth."

The drummer had already some conclusions about what the truth was. But he tried to push them aside because they were too horrifying to even think about.

There could be heard a loud breath in and out. 

"And the truth is...?" 

That was Brian's voice. His three closest friends, his bandmates, were listening to the call. And they were all so,  _so_  worried about him.

"Originally, we wouldn't bother calling you. Business is business. But I was told you're about to be a really successful band, you already are! And it would be so sad to lose your drummer, am I right?

So, here's the deal: I'll call you to inform how much money we were offered for him and if you pay the price, or even better, more, we'll give him back to you."

They heard some noises like someone was falling and then Brian's voice again, in a worse state than John's was.

"H-Human t-traff-ficing."

 _Slow motion_. That's how Roger felt now. Like in slow motion.

He heard Great agreeing in the distance, promising the band to call them two days later when they know the price. He heard Rat whispering something into his ear again, but he couldn't make out the words themselves.

He was crying, his vision blinded by hot tears that kept rolling down his cheeks. He could hear his own sobbing but it felt like it was coming from another room like it was in the distance.

He heard about human trafficking before. But he never assumed, never even thought it was something that could happen to  _him._

It usually happened to girls. They would be sold as slaves, as some pieces meat, as  _objects_. Was that something he would become now?

No... These guys called the rest of Queen. They could redeem him.

But the band was broke.

Hell, they couldn't even afford new drums as the studio kept reminding them.

And Roger was sure the  _ransom_  wouldn't be cheap. He was fucked.

So he just kept on sobbing. 

He kept going on even after Great with Rat brought a water bottle and a little sandwich on the bed. After one of them untied his hands. After they left with the telephone. After they left him alone in the dark again.

He wished for his bandmates. They would soothe him. They would comfort him. 

He wished for Sammy.

For Mary.

For any other person that was ever nice to him.

However, he knew no one would come.

_He was alone in the dark._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, what do you think happens next? Do you like Rat or Great more? Let me know down in the comments, please! I'll be glad for every Kudos of course.  
> I'm really excited to introduce you to another new character, I think you'll love him!  
> Just wait.  
> Currently, I'm writing the first version of the beginning of Chapter 4 and Chapter 3, so stay tuned.  
> Love you!

**Author's Note:**

> I’m already working on Chapter two, don’t worry!  
> If you’d leave Kudos and a your opinion, I’ll love you more than Freddie loved Delilah. :)  
> And if there’s anyone who could be my beta reader, please contact me, thank you!


End file.
